Red
by xxBroken21xx
Summary: Red, was the color of his hair, the color of their love and the color of his blood on her porcelain white hands. GaaraxIno
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello! Well here is my first attempt at writing a Naruto Fanfic. I hope you all like it and if you do please review. I actually had a dream about this which is why at three in the morning I woke up and had to start writing. So Enjoy! **_

_**Summary: Red, was the color of his hair, the color of their love and the color of his blood on her porcelain white hands. GaaraxIno**_

* * *

Red. It was everywhere and she didn't know what to do. It had happened so quickly and unexpectedly, which was odd considering the best strategist of their village was on their team. This had not been one of the possible outcomes they had planned for. Now, she was the only one who could do something.

_Breathe._ She told herself. _Breathe and think, what would Shikamaru do? _First she looked over her own wounds, nothing too severe but she had lost some blood. Then she looked over at her fellow teammates. One dead. Two seriously injured and unconscious, one missing, and a whole lot of blood. She looked around, _where were they?_

The fight had been so intense that they were thrown off course. She quickly jumped onto a tree to get a clear view. There at a distance she could see a village and one she recognized. _Sunagakure_. Now she had a choice to make, go for help or take them with her. She knew she didn't have a lot of chakra left and she didn't know if she would make it. Time was of an essence especially to her injured teammates. With a deep breath she made her decision.

She jumped back to where her teammates laid wounded and looked over both of them. _Him._ She said to herself after looking for the one with the most serious wounds. She gently picked him up and put him over her shoulder. She looked back down at her other teammate, her best friend, and said. "I am sorry, so sorry but I am coming back…. Just hang on a little more. Hang on." And with that she left going as fast as she could with the little chakra she had left.

It took her longer than expected but she made it. She was at the gates when she felt it, all her energy was drained and she was losing blood too quickly. The guards ran up to her, saying things she didn't pay attention to. She needed to get back, he needed help.

"Temari, the kazekage, whoever. Just tell them Konohagakure shinobi need help. 150 meters to the west." She said as commanding as she could in her current state. "And get him to the medics." She handed over the body to one of the guards. Both of them looked her over once more before running off to do as they were told by the injured kunoichi.

With strength she didn't know she had, she started her way back. She was almost there; she could feel the low chakra flow of her fallen teammate, when everything started to fade into darkness. "Shikamaru..." was the last word she whispered before hitting the ground.

* * *

Today was not his day. He had been having a strange feeling all day, it kind of felt as if something important was going to happen today. He had never felt this before, even the day he died, which made it strange. He tried to ignore the feeling but as the time passed by it only seemed to get stronger which was seriously affecting his work. He was behind as it was and today was the day he was supposedly going to finish his paperwork but that damn feeling was proving hard to shake off.

He was about to start on another document when a gate guard barged in without knocking. He looked up at the guard who had a panicked look on his face as if unsure what to say. So he asked. "What is it?"

The guard looked at him and then straightened up a bit to inform him. "A blonde kunoichi arrived at the gates at 1300 hrs and stated that there were leaf ninjas in need of help 150 meters west. She ordered us to inform Temari or yourself, Kazekage-Sama. She left us an injured shinobi. Then she left again."

Gaara looked over to the clock; about 20 minutes had passed since thekunoichi had asked for help. Minutes that could mean life or death. He was angry. He looked at the guard. "How could it take you so long to inform me? There are people hurt and it took you this long to come and tell me?"

"I..I am so..sorry." the guard stuttered scared of the vicious glare on the kazekages face. "I didn't know what to do."

With one last glare at the guard, Gaara ran out of his office and started on his way in the direction the guard had informed. If there were seriously injured ninjas from Konoha that die from the lack of help from Suna, this could mean a break in their alliance. It was a time of peace and they couldn't afford any complications like that.

He could smell the blood already from 100 meters away which meant it was not good. He continued and that's when he saw her. Her blonde hair messed up and her black uniform torn and stained with blood. He was about to reach her when she fell forward on the ground, he was close enough to hear her say one word. "Shikamaru".

He turned over her limp body and realized he recognized her. She had accompanied many times Nara Shikamaru to visit Suna on supposedly treaty related missions when he knew all too well he was simply there to visit his sister Temari. And this woman was his friend, whose name he could not recall but remembered how thanks to her they now had medicinal herbs that were of great use to the Suna medics.

He looked her over, she had lost a lot of blood but she would live. However that left him concerned, she was a medic nin and would only be coming back in her condition for one reason. Whoever was still out there was seriously hurt. He quickly placed her against a tree sensing no imminent danger and continued on his way to where said girl had informed his guards.

He arrived at a clearing where two shinobi laid. One he could tell was already gone but the other one was barely breathing and his mask was cracked. Gaara went over to him and removed the mask. It was as he suspected none other than Nara Shikamaru. He had serious injuries that could prove fatal. As quickly and carefully as he could he gathered enough sand to lift him up and return to the village only stopping to pick up the girl he had left unconscious.

He was by the gates in an instant and was met by Temari and Kankuro. It didn't take long for Temari to recognize the shinobi he had brought with him. She rarely showed emotion but he could see the fear in her eyes. "We must get them to the hospital. Temari take her." He said handing over the girl to her. "Kankuro there is a body that needs to be picked up. I trust you know where."

Kankuro simply nodded and disappeared. Gaara and Temari then followed suit to the hospital. At their arrival a team of medic nins where there to tend to the fallen. They were taken inside and all there was left to do was wait.

"What happened?" Temari asked in a voice laced with fear of what would happen to them, to him specially.

"I don't know. They were obviously attacked and the blonde one was able to get to the gates with one of the injured but she didn't make it to the other ones." He replied still trying to make sense of everything. He knew they were ANBU from the masks they wore which made it even stranger since according to Naruto their missions were always completely covert. Nobody knew about them. Nobody except the hokage and the one's doing it.

"Yamanaka Ino. Yes I know but….how could they not see that coming? He was on the team, he knows everything, he…promised…"she said as tears started to fall. "...promised he would be safe, that he would visit."

Gaara didn't know what to do. He had never seen his sister in so much pain. He knew there was a level of attraction between the two but he hadn't realized the extent of it. "He will be okay." Was all he said before leading his sister to the nearest chair, letting her cry out her feelings.

Gaara just sat there hoping that his presence was enough to comfort his sister; he didn't know how to deal with his own emotions much less those of others. He hoped for the sake not only of his sister but for the treaties that the leaf shinobi would be alright. He knew he had to inform Naruto of the situation but that would have to wait, at least until he knew the status of the injured.

Kankuro arrived but a few minutes later. He went to where his siblings where sitting. His sister trying to calm herself and Gaara as stoic as ever. Knowing his brother he was most probably assessing ways to deal with the situation, making a list of all the things that would need to be done. "The body has been dealt with; it is ready for whatever is decided." Kankuro said before sitting down next to his sister and wrapping an arm around her to try and comfort her a bit, something their younger brother would know little about.

It was a while before a medic nin finally came out, his uniform stained with blood.

"Status report" Gaara commanded as he stood up to face the head medic at the hospital.

The medic removed his glasses seemingly tired. "The first one they brought in is stable. It's a good thing they brought him in first since his injuries are quite extensive and he will need a few weeks to recover. The girl is fine; her injuries though profound were healed. She should wake up soon but she will still need rest." He paused looking over at the other sand siblings before returning his gaze to the kazekage. "The other one had many wounds, most of them healed but there is one in particular that…."

"That what?" Temari suddenly asked not liking the look on the medics face.

"That we don't know how to heal. We've tried various techniques but it just keeps reopening and not only is it making him loose blood but it's depleting all of his chakra. We can't get him stable which is why we have a medic feeding him chakra and healing him constantly. We will continue this until we figure out what it could be. "He explained. "I believe it could be a curse, a consequence of a jutsu."

Gaara nodded. He had heard of something similar but that only meant it had been someone powerful and dangerous. And considering it had happened near his village he had to know what happened out there. "Do what you must to figure it out. You may use any resource available."

The medic nin bowed. "Thank you Kazekage –sama. I will try to be as quick as possible."

"Can we…can I see him?" Temari asked.

"Yes, but try not to break the medic concentration. "The medic replied. "This way."

Temari followed the medic into another part of the hospital while Gaara and Kankuro stayed behind.

"I hope for her sake that he gets better." Kankuro said looking at the door their sister had disappeared through.

Gaara didn't say anything. There were so many things to be done and decisions to be made. But first thing was first. Without a single word he followed in Temari's footsteps, through the double doors and to the only person who could tell him what the hell had happened out there.

He found the room fairly quickly and stepped inside making his way towards the single bed with the single blonde female kunoichi. He had never seen her so up close. She was beautiful as he had heard many of his own shinobi call her, but upon closer inspection he noticed the faint scars that revealed her life as a ninja. Scars that spoke of a hard life and horrors seen especially during the war time in which both had lived things many wish to forget.

He was contemplating waking her up when she opened her ice blue eyes and looked straight at his own green ones. No one aside from Naruto had ever looked straight into his eyes and held his gaze for so long. Even though it had probably been seconds it seemed like an eternity before she decided to speak.

"How are they?" she asked hoarsely.

"They are being tended to." He replied. "I know you are injured but it's important for me to know what happened. Who attacked you?"

Ino sat up a little straighter not taking her eyes away from the Kazekage. "I can't inform you of too much for this was an S-Class mission and my report is for the Hookage. But what I can tell you is that we were close to Kirigakure in the land of water borders when we got attacked. It was more than 20 shinobi but there were no visible sign of alliance to any village. "She paused taking a deep breath and wincing at the pain it brought to her ribs. "I don't know how they knew we would be there, we never planned for this. Somehow the battle got so intense that we got separated and we were driven off in different directions. Finally Morino-san used his jutsu to eliminate a few but not before he was injured. Both Shikamaru and I were able to make our way to Ibiki but we were surrounded. Then there was a flash of light and it blinded us. I could only feel that we were being attacked. As soon as the flash disappeared the shinobi were gone, even their bodies and only Ibiki-san and Shikamaru were on the floor injured. Aburame-san was also there dead and Comani-san was missing as well."

"Thank you for the information. I already sent men to survey the surroundings. If your teammate is out there, they will find him." He replied already starting to get up.

"Wait!" Ino said as she grabbed the Kazekage's arm. "I know there is something you're not telling me. How are they? Really?"

Gaara looked down at where this girl was holding his arm. Her hand was soft and warm. Nobody ever touched him if not by accident, and even then they would apologize profusely. That was already two things this girl had done that surprised him in less than five minutes. It was just perturbing to say the least.

Ino slowly let go, noticing how he was simply starring at the spot she had held onto, but he was leaving and she had to know what was truly going on. Although she had to admit she had felt a current of warmth or electricity the moment her skin came into contact with his. This however she attributed to her lack of rest.

"There is a problem with one of Nara's injuries. It seems to be reopening and at the same time depleting his chakra. The medics are currently just continuously giving him a flow of chakra until they figure out what it is." Gaara answered truthfully once he was able to tear his gaze away from where he still felt the ghost of her hand grabbing his arm.

Ino eyes went wide. _That's not possible_ she thought. _That could only mean that…_

Before Gaara could blink. Ino had jumped out of bed, barely clad in clothes and with only her undergarments and bandages she made her way out the door and into the hall asking the nearest medic where was Nara Shikamaru's room.

Gaara quickly followed her down a few more halls, she was surprisingly quick despite her injuries he noted, she found the room she was looking for and burst in.

"STOP!" she screamed at the medics. "You're going to kill him."

Temari stood up alarmed at her outburst. "What are you talking about?"

"A genjutsu was used on him by one of our teammates, Comani-san. It makes the victim fight with himself in his mind but the injuries he gets are real. It's intended to be a double edge sword. Either he uses all his chakra to defeat himself ultimately killing himself or he bleeds out. "She turned to the medics. "You are just giving him more energy to hurt himself. He has to be stopped."

"How... how do we do that?" Temari asked shakily, not sure how this could be stopped.

Ino herself wasn't sure what to do. Shikamaru knew her fighting style too well to defeat him in his own mind, which was the only way he would stop hurting himself and the medics could finally heal him without giving him power to destroy himself. There was only a single way she could think of but that was too dangerous, she wouldn't know if she could control it.

"What are you thinking Yamanaka-san?" Gaara suddenly asked breaking her concentration.

"I can only think of a way but I don't know if it will work…or if I can even do it." She replied with a troubled look.

Gaara looked at his distraught sister, whatever it was they should at least try it. He turned to Ino. "This situation is difficult but it's important we try everything we can to help. I trust you know what you need to do." He said and added "I trust you."

Ino looked up into his eyes. Here was the Kazekage who didn't even know her saying that he trusted her. It made her want to laugh but it also did give her the confidence to at least try. She sighed. "I need someone who can beat Shikamaru in a fight."

Temari and Kankuro both looked at Gaara expectantly. He simply nodded in response.

"Alright, I've only ever done this with a couple of birds but it's the basic concept. I am going to be a bridge between Shikamaru and the Kazekage'smind. That way the Kage can be in Shikamaru's mind and defeat him in order to allow the medics to heal his wounds. But first I need to create a connection between the kage's mind and my own." She said looking at Gaara for approval.

"Fine." Was all he said before reading himself to receive the jutsu and not block by instinct.

She made a few hand seals and as her body fell to the ground her mind went into the body of the kazekage**.** She saw so many images, all of them sad and painful. His mind was trying to get her out by also showing her the dark memories the ones as the jinchuriki. But there was one memory that absolutely froze Ino for a few seconds, it was of him as a child wanting, yearning for his mother's love only to be rejected and hated by his own mother and those around. It took her a minute to compose herself but she was finally able to create a connection between his and her mind before going back to her body.

When she awoke she found herself on the ground and in the arms of kankuro who was holding her against his chest peering curiously at her. Knowing her fate she did the next hand seals but this time in the direction of where Shikamaru laid wounded. Once inside she saw Shikamaru fighting another shikamaru who had the same wounds as the one currently in bed.

She quickly made the connection between Shikamaru and Gaara. Gaara she noted was definitely a bit disoriented but he focused the minute he noticed the Shikamaru's fighting. She saw how his long strides quickly got him to where Shikamaru was fighting. She saw his sand fly out the gourd and attack him. She saw how agile he was the moment Shikamaru tried to attack him only to miss. She could only watch as she held the connection. She watched Gaara's graceful movements. But mostly she watched Gaara. She didn't know why but before she knew what was happening, the fight was over and Shikamaru laid unconscious in his own mind. There was a reason Gaara was kazekageafterall.

Making sure Shikamaru was truly down for the fight she released the connection and woke up to the same position she had found herself a few minutes ago. She turned to Kanakuro "thank you." And then she got up to go by Shikamaru's side. "He´s going to be unconscious for a while but you should be able to heal him now."

A tear stained Temari looked at her. "Thank you. Thank you so much." Temari had never liked the girl too much, thinking she was too close to Shikmaru but that didn't matter right now. What mattered is that she had saved him and for that she would always be grateful.

Ino started to smile back when she suddenly saw the ground approaching her really fast, but before she hit she felt strong arms hoisting her up and taking her god knows where. Truthfully she didn't care, she just wanted to rest and succumb to the darkness but first there was something she had to do.

Gaara was taking the girl back to her room. She had obviously overexerted herself and now she had fallen unconscious as well. She needed to rest and recover her chakra. He was about to put her down when she opened her eyes and looked straight at him.

"I am sorry." She whispered.

"For what?" he found himself asking without meaning to.

"I am sorry you don't know what love is." She replied once more before truly giving into the darkness.

Gaara was speechless. Here was this wounded unconscious girl, limp in his arms and she was feeling sorry for _him._ For him, the Kazekage of Suna.

And what did that even mean? that he didn't know what love is. Of course he knew. He had looked it up in a dictionary, after all.

Today was seriously not his day.

* * *

_**Until Next Chapter So Review Please! :) **_


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello and firstly thank you to the people who reviewed! I hope you all like this next chapter! **

* * *

Another. Another document he was supposed to go over and instead it was carelessly thrown aside. After having sent news of the events to Naruto and having dealt with the aftermath he just couldn't concentrate. Something or more like someone was distracting him from his work.

_Love…_He thought unconsciously reaching for the sign on his forehead. Yes, he was aware he wasn't good with emotions, but he did know what love was. _Didn't he?_

He leaned back in frustration. He knew he had work to do and yet against his better judgment here he was contemplating the words a half conscious girl said to him. This was not good. It had been two days now that he had been distracted. This had to end now.

With a swift movement he got up and headed to the only place that would put to rest his wandering thoughts. It didn't take him long to get there however the person he had come to see was still sleeping and he didn't want to disturb her so he sat down and waited. It didn't take long. Blue eyes opened slowly with a look of confusion before they focused on him and a look of recognition took over.

They held each other's gaze. Green met blue and neither seemed to want to back down, not sure if it was a challenge or if they were simply searching for something beyond what they saw.

It was her who broke the eye contact first, lifting herself up on the bed. "Kazekage-sama. To what do I owe this visit?" she said as cordially as possible as if the last few minutes had never happened.

Gaara was silent. _Why was he here?_ He asked himself. _To know what she meant the other night. _Even as he thought of the answer it sounded silly. More importantly why did he even care?

He looked back up to see big blue eyes wide with curiosity but guarded at the same time which is what surprised him the most. How could she be so open yet at the same time so closed? He frowned. He was over thinking everything too much, from her words to the situation right now and he had things to do.

"Yamanaka-san, you are a guest of Suna, I came to see how you and your companions recovery was coming along. And seeing as everything is going accordingly I will take my leave and let you rest." He answered starting to stand up.

"Have you informed Nar…I mean the hookage about the situation?" she asked before he could leave.

"Yes. And this morning he sent word that he will come as soon as he can to deal with the situation. I also have men looking for your companion Comani to be detained and brought in." he paused. "You and your teammates are welcomed to stay here as long as you each need to recover."

"Thank you, we appreciate your kindness." She replied. "and Kazekage-sama?"

He turned to face her from where he stood by the door ready to leave. "Yes?"

"It's Ino."

"What?" he simply asked confused.

"My name." she said. "Please, call me Ino."

"If that is what you want." He answered facing the door again and turning the door handle ready to leave yet again when he paused. "Gaara. Call me Gaara." He said in a low tone before leaving, failing to see the smile on Ino's lips.

* * *

It took two more days for the medic nins of suna to finally sign her release form and in those two days she did everything but listen to the medics. She would make her rounds visiting Shikamaru who was still unconscious, which was understandable after his physical and mental fight, Ibiki who was in a good mood or at least as good as he could be with serious injuries and still trying to figure out how he could have missed the intent in their ex-teammate, and of course Aburame-san who deserved at least a prayer who despite his early death had been a very helpful asset to their team. The hard part would be telling Shino, a fellow rookie nine, that his uncle had passed because despite having little contact with the bug wielder she knew how to read people and she noticed a special connection between the young ninja and his uncle.

And most importantly, despite the constant orders to just relax and rest, her mind would simply refuse and it was all the fault of a certain red haired green eyed Kazekage. Not only were the memories she had seen been haunting her but his last visit left her concerned to say the least. She wasn't in the interrogation squad and Ibiki's right hand for nothing, and she knew he had been there to say more than he did. He had something troubling him and she wanted to know what it was.

She was about ready, having changed from the unflattering hospital gown to her pedestrian clothes she had brought with her for the mission. She looked herself over in the small mirror at the far end of the wall and nodded in approval. _This will have to do_. She thought before hearing a knock on the door.

"Come in." she said loudly so whoever stood outside would hear.

In came none other than Kankuro, his black outfit and face paint exactly as she remembered him from her last visit. He had become a friend to her, her entertainment for when Shikamaru would abandon her to spend time with Temari. Although stoic at first she managed to bring out his playful and sometimes immature side which is how they formed a nice bond when he wasn't on missions.

"Kankuro! Quite nice to finally see you." She greeted. "And here I thought I was going to leave the hospital without a single visit from you. I guess I owe Temari some money."

"You should save the trip and give it to me. I bet Temari that I would visit you before you left the hospital grounds." He replied with a smirk.

"That's not fair! You can't bet on your own actions."

"It seems I can."

She stuck her tongue out at him and he laughed going forward the few remaining steps that separated them to envelop her in a hug. "It's good to see you well."

"Thanks." She answered returning the hug.

He was the first to separate from her. "So are you ready to leave?"

"Yes!" she answered enthusiastically tired of looking at the same four white walls for the past couple of days.

They headed out the door and started down the hallway. "You will stay tonight in one of the ambassador suites and tomorrow you will leave for Konoha. There was news that the Hookage will come in a week so you should be able to get to Konoha before he comes and give him your report. In the meantime we are still scouting the area for the people responsible for the attack." Kankuro said in his businesslike tone.

"Well thank you for your accommodations, but I will stay in the inn I usually at when we visit until Shikamau and Ibiki are recovered."

"Sorry Ino but these are orders from the Kazekage."

"Well I'll just talk to him and tell him no. Where can I find him?"

Kankuro stopped dead in his tracks and looked at her. "Nobody disobeys the kazekage's order."

"Well I am not simply going to disobey, I am going to talk to him first and then disobey him if he doesn't agree."

"But..."

"No buts. I am going to see Shikamaru before we leave and then you are going to take me to him. Okay?"

Kankuro knew her well enough that even though it sounded like a request it wasn't. It was an order and he knew better than to say no to her. Sometimes he thought she was scarier than his own brother and that was saying a lot. "Fine." He answered a bit defeated. "But I am not getting involved."

"Fine you big wuss." She replied turning the corner towards Shikamaru's room.

"I am not a wuss!" was all that was heard in the hospital as he hurried down the corridor after her.

* * *

He was (finally) getting some work done when he heard a knock on the door. He looked over at his clock, it was midafternoon and he had no council meetings schedules. He was supposed to take this time and advance on the work he had been lagging on thanks to a certain blond. He was about to tell the person to come in when the door was thrown open by none other than his tormentor. Yamanaka Ino.

"I am sorry to interrupt but she wanted to speak to you and I couldn't stop her." Kankuro said coming into the office after said blond.

"Wuss." He heard her say under her breath to his brother who in turn gave her a sheepish smile. He noticed their relative closeness and he noticed how his brother stood relaxed next to her in comparison to all the other times he had been in his office stiff as a rock.

Ino stepped forward. "I truly am really sorry to interrupt but it was important that I tell you that I will not leave Suna until I can do so with the teammates I first arrived with."

Gaara couldn't help but notice the determination and confidence in her eyes. The same eyes that now held his gaze with defiance as if daring him to defy her.

"Leave us." He told Kankuro who only momentarily hesitated before doing as he was told. He turned to look at her. "Why?"

She sighed; she was no stranger to having to explain her decisions, especially those based on emotions. "Well shikamaru is family, if Temari o Kankuro was hurt I am sure you wouldn't leave them alone in a land not their own. And as for Ibiki, he is my mentor, the one who helped me advance in my jutsu and made me believe in myself. You of all people should under… "she stopped suddenly realizing she had said too much.

Gaara knew what, more precisely who, she was talking about which meant she obviously did remember his memories and thoughts which confirmed one of his suspicions. He didn't know how it felt to have someone else know about what happened and his emotions at that time. He had tried so hard to keep them all in as to not burden anyone especially in the time he had had Shikaku. And now here was someone who knew about everything transcendental that had happened in his life. The most surprising part was that she understood him or at least she wasn't judging him or running scared.

"I am sorry, I shouldn't have said anything. I was over bounds and I apologize. I was simply trying to make a point and when it comes to people close to me I tend to overreact." she said taking a breath.

"Fine." he simply said. "You may stay until your friends recover. Naruto won't mind your report a few days later. "

"Thank you!" she replied sincerely with a smile. "I will try to not to be too much trouble. "

He liked her smile, he found himself thinking. It was the first time he had actually contemplated anyone's smile and he had a suspicion that it would be the last. "Alright, you may go. Despite being discharged I am sure you need to rest."

Ino bowed and turned to leave. She was right at the door when she turned around again to face him despite him having already returned to his work. "Gaara?" she said in a soft voice.

Gaara found himself stunned. Aside from Naruto and his siblings nobody had called him by his first name and even though he was the one who asked her to call him like that he didn't think she would. But the most stunning part was that he liked the way she said his name, he felt something stir deep inside, something he had never felt before and it bothered him mostly because he didn't know what it was. "Yes?..Ino." he added a bit hesitantly unsure what she would make of him calling her also by her first name as she had requested.

She gave him a small smile as if in approval. "The other day, when you came to visit, there was something bothering you right? If I can, perhaps I could help."

Gaara frowned, there was a reason why she was in the interrogation squad of her village. "It was nothing important."

It was Ino who now frowned. "You know there are people who wear their emotions on their sleeves and then there are those who, like yourself, are harder to read to understand where the fuel for their actions comes from. I can see that you have a lot of work to do and I am sure you didn't visit just to check up on us." She paused. "Just know that I am here to help. You'd be surprised at how much of a great listener I am."

Gaara almost smiled. She definitely had a way with words. "Tonight." He said surprising himself.

"What?"

"You need to nourish yourself and perhaps….perhaps we will find out if you are as great of al listener as you stated." He answered.

She smiled again to his pleasure and nodded. "Tonight." She confirmed and took her leave not wanting to give him an opportunity to change his mind.

He wasn't sure what he was doing but for the first time in a long time he was actually eager for night to fall.

* * *

**Well that's it. Till next time!**


	3. Chapter 3

**First I would like to thank the people who reviewed and put the story in their story alerts. So Thank You!**

**And second I tried to update sooner but unfortunately life always has another plan for you. Well here's chapter 3. Enjoy!**

* * *

Five. Five were the times she had changed her outfit. She didn't know why she was suddenly so nervous about a simple dinner with the Kazekage. Actually she did know, but she didn't want to admit it to herself. She found him intriguing and yet unreachable and here she was getting ready to go out with him.

She took a deep breath. She had to control herself. He was just another man, Kankuro's and Temari's brother. It was her after all that told him she was there to help and he just simply took up her offer. It was what she wanted so now she had to deal with it.

She decided on the grey and blue sundress that Temari had let her borrow considering that she had a lack of appropriate clothes. It was simple, strapless and it fell to her knees. _'It will have to do' _she thought looking herself over in the mirror.

There was a knock on her door just as she placed the last hairclip on her loose hair as for it not to get in the way. She opened the door and found Gaara standing outside a bit stiff if they asked her. She noticed he had changed into more comfortable dark blue pants and white shirt. She noticed his hair had a bit of water which meant he had showered before coming and his tousled hair made him look even more handsome than before. At the thought Ino shook her head, she wasn't here to fawn over the kazekages attractive features…but she just couldn't help herself.

Gaara cleared his throat. "Shall we go Ino?"

"Oh. Yeah." Ino replied having been removed from her thoughts at his question. "So where are we going?" she asked closing the door behind her.

"It's a small place, not far away. I didn't think you should overexert yourself too much."

Ino smiled, it almost sounded like he cared about her but she knew he was only being polite. "Well thank you cuz I am starving. By the way, you should definitely change the hospital menu. The vegetables are not that great." She added a bit teasingly.

"It is noted. I will program that as soon as possible."

She laughed. "Do you always take everything so seriously?"

"What do you mean?" he asked turning to look at her this time.

"I was just kidding. The hospital menu is perfectly good and healthy. You should relax and stop thinking about work. It's good for you, trust me, I am a medic nin after all." She replied with a wink.

Gaara frowned. "Then what am I supposed to think about?"

"I don't know. Isn't there anything you like to do that is not work related?"

"I like to train."

Now Ino frowned. "Something that isn't ninja related."

He was silent for a minute. Ino took this time to look at him, how his eyes seemed to be searching for something in the horizon. She knew he was thinking about everything that he did and that it was most probable that he didn't do anything else besides work and solve everyone's problem without taking anytime for himself.

"You know what I like to do?" she asked

He shook his head.

"I like to daydream. It's a habit I might have picked up from Shikamaru but I believe it's what kept me sane amidst all the war and the tragedies that resulted. I like to dream about my future, what I'll be doing and who will be with me. I know the life of a kunoichi is unpredictable but…"

"It gives you something worth fighting for."

"Exactly." She said softly as she looked at his green eyes full of understanding.

He was the first to break the eye contact. "We're here."

She looked at the place where they stood in front of, not even having noticed how they got there. He wasn't kidding when he said it was a small place, unless you looked twice you would miss the small sign that read restaurant over the normal wooden door.

She followed him in to a medium sized room accommodated to fit only six tables and the bar where they prepared the food. There was only one other person in a far corner table trying to read with the dim lights that decorated the room and didn't even glance up to see who had come in. They were greeted by a seemingly nice old lady.

She bowed. "Welcome back Kazekage-sama. It's good to see that you have come accompanied this time."

"Thank you Shijo-san." He replied with a small nod of the head.

"Your usual table is all set. Please follow me." She said leading the short way to a table situated in the other corner of the restaurant. They sat down and she handed them each a menu before leaving them so they could decide.

Whereas Gaara didn't even bother to look at the menu, Ino looked through it quite meticulously noticing they were mainly simple homemade dishes which were great because she was starting to miss home cooked meals.

Shijo returned right on time as Ino closed the menu. "What can I get for you?"

"I will have the Kare Raisu." Gaara replied.

"With milk as usual?"

He nodded.

Shoji wrote it down and turned to Ino. "And for the pretty miss?"

Ino smiled. "I will have the Domburi with beef, a side dish of nakujaga and a small ramen please."

"It's always great to see someone with a healthy appetite." Shoji said with a smile. "Would a nice green tea be fine?"

"It would be perfect."

"Great. Your orders should be done a few minutes."

"Thank you." Ino replied as Shoji walked way. "You come here quite often don't you?" she asked now turning to Gaara.

"It's convenient. So yes."

"Of course." She replied. She didn't know what to make of him. He was so serious about everything, even about simple things like where to eat. Yet there were those couple of times where she could have sworn he was about to smile, to open up but maybe it was just her imagination.

"Ino"

"Huh?" she said once again having been absorbed by her thought over a certain red haired kazekage. Although she did notice that for a strange reason every time, three times so far, her heart had skipped a beat when he would say her name. She would definitely have to get that checked out.

"How are your teammates doing?"

"They are doing well for their condition. Shikamaru should wake up any day now and I think that with Temari by his side he should be better in no time. And Ibiki, well he's a fighter so I am sure that he is going to want to leave the hospital before he is fully healed." She replied with a small smile at the memories of her teammates.

"That's good to hear." He replied. "And yourself. How do you feel?"

Ino frowned. "I am feeling great but that reminds me that we are not here to talk about me. Why did you visit me the other day?"

Gaara slightly opened his mouth as if to say something before suddenly closing it. Shoji had appeared with their food and placed it accordingly.

"Enjoy!" she said leaving them alone again.

Ino looked at Gaara expectantly. "So?"

"You should eat, you need your strength." He simply said.

"I will eat once you start talking. I believe you were the one who wanted to test my listening skills."

"Fine. But eat." He commanded not saying anything more until he saw that she put the first piece of meat in her mouth.

Gaara looked down at his plate stirring his food around as if in deep thought. "I needed a place to think. There were certain things that were and are not letting me work."

"So that's the only reason you went to visit me?" she asked, sure that he wasn't telling her everything.

"Yes, I didn't want to be disturbed by any more reports and it is my duty as Kazekage to make sure any ally guest is well." He replied still not looking at her.

"Okay." She said letting his weak excuse pass...for now. "Well you're obviously stressed. Like I said too much work is bad. You should take a vacation or something."

"I can't." He replied a bit strained. "People depend on me. I can't let them down…not again"

She noticed his free hand had balled into a fist. She placed her own hand over his trying to comfort him. At the sudden touch, he looked up at her for the first time since they had entered the restaurant. "The only way you will let anyone down is if you don't take care of yourself. I know you want to be strong for your people and you have but there is only so much any one person can do. You need…deserve a break."

He was quiet for a minute before replying. "I don't think this is the right moment for that."

Ino laughed. "From the look of the pile of paperwork you had on your desk, I don't it will ever be the right time for a break which is why you would have to make time for it."

"I suppose I could." He said taking a sip of his milk. "I just don't know what I would do."

"Well anything that would distract you from your duties. Basically just have fun."

"Fun?"

Ino still recalled some his memories from which she realized there weren't any of him just having fun with his family or his friends. It was a foreign concept to her that somebody would not know how to have fun but then again no one had quite the upbringing that Gaara did. Maybe it was for that reason that she felt compelled to try to help him.

"What would you do?" he asked shaking Ino out of her thoughts.

Ino smiled, for this she had an answer. "I would try something new. At least that way I could say I don't regret doing bunch of different things if in my next mission I was to…." She stopped mid sentence realizing it was taking a turn to a much somber place which is not what she wanted when talking about fun.

Gaara nodded in understanding. "And what have you done in your breaks in between missions?"

"What haven't I done?" Ino replied with a small laugh. From there and through the rest of their meal Ino told him about everything she had done during her time off. From stargazing in the rain to trying to play a prank on Kiba which only resulted in being peed on by one of his clans dog and being claimed property until the smell wore off which resulted in a week's time despite her constantly bathing. There was something that Ino noticed through the telling of her stories which was that the Kazekage held on to her every word as if they were as important as any of his political business and that there were certain times when he wanted to smile but restrained himself for one reason or another. But either way she noticed he had relaxed considerably since he stood outside her door.

At the end of her last story, Gaara paid for their food and both went back out after thanking Shoji-san for the wonderful meal. "Are you alright? I believe we were out longer than intended and you are still injured."

"I am fine, there's no need to worry." She replied before frowning. "Although it seems like I am absolutely no use to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well the point of this outing was for me to listen to your problems and try to help you. But instead all I did was talk about myself and I am sorry to have wasted your time Kazekage-sama."

Gaara grabbed Ino by the arm and turned her around to face him stopping her dead in her track. "I will not allow you to apologize for this evening Yamanaka. You have helped me far more than you realize." He paused taking a step towards her getting them closer than they have ever been, without her unconscious that is. "_This_ was very helpful. It was.. fun and I….I would like to do this again."

It gave her chills the way he looked at her, the way her skin was burning under his touch and the way his voice lowered an octave during his last sentence in which she wasn't sure what he was saying. "Are you asking me…?"

She was interrupted by the sudden arrival of Kankuro with which Gaara gently let her arm go and took a couple of steps back.

Kankuro looked from Ino to Gaara, a confused look in his face before addressing Gaara "I've been looking for you. The scouts have important information to give."

"Alright , tell them to meet me at the main training ground." He replied his normal formal tone back.

"Will do." Kankuro replied about to leave but not before turning to Gaara's companion. "Goodnight Ino and by the way you look really pretty tonight."

Ino smiled. "Thanks, you don't look too shabby yourself. And goodnight to you too."

Kankuro smiled back before disappearing into the night leaving Ino and Gaara alone again.

"You should go, it must be important if they are looking for you at this time at night. I can get back by myself alright." She said knowing he would offer to walk her back to her suite.

He looked at her for a brief second before following his brother act and disappearing off into the night, almost as if they were complete stranger and the night's events had never taken place.

She was stunned considering there wasn't even a goodbye. She thought they had actually had a moment perhaps started a friendship or something and yet here she stood in an abandoned street in the middle of the night thinking to herself _"What the f…?"_

* * *

**Reviews are welcomed!**


End file.
